FRAM, Slokker Set to Revitalize Calgary East Village

It was announced yesterday that some big players from around the world, including Toronto-based FRAM Building Group, are joining up to help develop another large swath of Calgary’s East Village.

FRAM and Slokker Real Estate Group, a company headquartered in the Netherlands, will build 800 new one and two-bedroom units on a four-parcel area of land along the Bow River near Fort Calgary. The project will cost an estimated $300 million.

The Calgary Municipal Land Corporation (CMLC), a development company created by the city to help re-energize the East Village, has spent millions putting in new roads, sewer and waterlines, and streetlights in the hopes of luring private investment to the area. Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi, who sits on the CMLC Board, told reporters that the announcement is a big deal for the city:

“The announcement today means that we’re really very serious about moving forward with the East Village, and the mechanisms put in place by the previous council to make sure these developments happen are working.”

Frank Gionne, president of FRAM, said that the CMLC’s work was a key factor in his company’s decision to buy in.

Soon enough. . .

Giannone added that his vision was for the development to one day be a pedestrian neighbourhood “where people can live, work and play without necessarily needing their car to get to work.”